sonofsamsonfandomcom-20200215-history
Armaros
Armaros is one of Philistine commander Sidon's more colorful sentries, personality-wise. Although Armaros presumably accompanies his master on all of the latter's missions in the Son of Samson series, the only occasions where a soldier is addressed as Armaros occur in volumes one and seven. The reader first meets him in volume one when Sidon arrives at the Yaffa Oasis where Branan and Jobab have settled for the evening and ransacks the campsites for valuables. Armaros is one of the two soldiers guarding Sidon's tent Branan knocks out before assaulting Sidon himself. Armaros also makes an appearance at the beginning of volume seven, when he is shown to be entertaining his comrades with the tale of the time he quarreled with Branan in bar. During their altercation, Branan snatches Armaros's sword and spears the table so violently with the blade that Armaros is unable to remove it. Branan then punts the table with such force that it knocks Armaros and another sentinel out into the street. Subsequently, Armaros assembles a group of his fellow soldiers to hunt down Branan and collect the bounty on his head. When the gang finally manages to corner their quarry, they dogpile on him so as to capture him without taking his life. Branan busts easily out of their tackle and flees into the night with Armaros and his Philistine troops in hot pursuit. Having had enough, Branan spins around and pitches some jars of oil at his foes to throw them off his tail. Presumably, Armaros loses his job with Sidon at the end of volume seven when Sidon's superior Pathrus strips Sidon of his commission for failing to take Branan into custody. 'Personality' Despite being one of the many antagonists Branan clashes with, Armaros is one of the more likable characters in the Son of Samson comic. Like the Adventures of Teddy Ruxpin baddie L.B. the Bounder, Armaros is more or less loyal to his employer but is certainly not above enjoying a few laughs at his hapless boss's expense. In one scene from volume seven, Armaros chuckles heartily at his recollection of Branan tying Sidon up in a sack and dangling him from a palm tree in the Yaffa Oasis near Ramath Lehi. Armaros's amusement on the subject is even more remarkable given that Branan knocked Armaros unconcious during that scrap as well. Apparently, Armaros has a reputation of being something of a wit, and also of being full of blarney. When regaling his campfire buddies with the yarn about of his run-in with Branan at a bar, Armaros exaggerates the beauty of the barmaids and also fibs about Branan tossing a pair of oxen (Branan almost never injures innocent animals if he can avoid it) at Armaros and his men. When called on for stretching the truth, Armaros shrugs and pleads "artistic embellishment." There is also something comically cowardly about Armaros. When seated around a campfire with his mates, Armaros hears one of the camels let out a startled grunt and rises to investigate the origin of the noise. Concealed behind the camel, Hebrew thief Toby releases a small snake from his sack to scare Armaros away. Not wanting his comrades to know he was frightened of a little snake, Armaros returns to the campfire, assuring his companions that nothing is amiss. Category:Characters Category:Males Category:Philistines Category:Minor Characters